A Worthless Death
by Sadie Auburn
Summary: Harry saw her as he was crossing the courtyard to meet his death. But he knew he couldn't go on without saying goodbye.


**Hey guys! This is a short story about my favorite OTP of all time. I have taken a paragraph or two from the Deathly Hallows, but Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. I skipped a bunch of the parts from the books, because I felt that after a major moment in this fanfiction, that Harry would not have taken out the Snitch, or that Harry would keep his Invisibility on. This may not make sense, but once you read the story, I think you'll get it. Enjoy, and don't forget to comment for suggestions on what I could do to make this better!**

* * *

Harry swung the cloak back over himself and walked on. Someone else was moving not far away, stooping over another prone figure on the ground. He was feet away from her when he realized it was Ginny. He stopped in his tracks. She was crouching over a girl who was whispering for her mother.

"It's all right," Ginny was saying. "It's okay. We're going to get you inside."

"But I want to go home," whispered the girl. "I don't want to fight anymore!"

"I know," said Ginny, and her voice broke. "It's going to be all right."

Ripples of cold undulated over Harry's skin. He wanted to shout out into the night, he wanted Ginny to know that he was there, he wanted her to know where she was going. He wanted to be stopped, to be dragged back, to be sent back, to be sent home... Then, without thinking, Harry took off the cloak, and reached out to her. Ginny didn't jump, turned her head slowly. Her face flooded with relief.

"Harry! I thought you had gone to the forest." Ginny sighed with relief. "You're not going, are you?"

Harry couldn't look her in the eye. "Gin, I-"

The girl lying next to Ginny gave a pained breath. Harry noticed her face was bloody, and pale, and her breaths were getting shorter. She gripped Ginny's hand tighter. Ginny looked desperate.

"Hang in there." Ginny said calmly, yet she was pleading.

The girl's hand went limp, and Ginny laid her hand on the girl's body. Harry looked at Ginny, and her face was full of pain.

"Ginny, I'm going to the forest. I should've done this earlier. Fred would still be alive." Harry took Ginny's face in his hands. "Tonks, Remus. Merlin, these people are dead because of me!"

"No, Harry. You can't possibly blame their deaths on yourself. They died for each other, they're fighting for what's right."

Harry looked at Ginny and saw that there was a single, silent tear trickling down her cheek. And after all those years, this strong, beautiful girl that Harry had come to know broke. She released her tears that she had been holding in for years. Harry held her as she cried silently.

"It's going to be all right Ginny." He tried to assure her. "Once this is over, the war will stop."

"No Harry! It won't. If you go in there, those people would've died for nothing. Think about it. Your parents, Sirius, Tonks, Remus, Mad-Eye." She choked. "Fred."

"But you'll be alive. That's all that matters. The rest of you will be alive."

"Damn it Harry. Your death will be worthless. No one in there is going to surrender to Voldemort. You know deep down that we won't." Ginny said, her voice beginning to rise.

That stung Harry. "At this point, I don't give a damn. As long as you live." he whispered, low and dangerous.

He turned away from her. "I just wanted to let you know. I love you, and that's never going to change." Harry swung Invisibility cloak over himself and began to walk toward the forest once more. He didn't look back, for if he did, he feared he wouldn't go on. But he looked back anyway. His first real home was nearly burned to the ground. Hogwarts was gone. He could see Gryffindor tower, burnt and ruined. And then Ginny was in front of him, tugging the cloak off of him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, and looked into his eyes. Harry saw things he had never noticed before. That there was a thin scar under her mouth that stopped at her chin, or that there were dark specks of black in her bright, brown eyes. In that moment, something overtook Harry. A new sort of courage came upon him, and he pushed Ginny against his body. Ginny leaned in and Harry's lips met hers halfway. The noises around them disappeared, and once again, Harry smelled the flowery scent in Ginny's hair. Within those few seconds, the kiss became more desperate. His hands travelling up and down her back, and eventually to her waist. Ginny pushed Harry against a nearby tree, kissing him deeper and deeper, then suddenly...

 _BANG!_

Ginny pulled away and looked around. She swallowed hard when she caught sight of several Death Eaters watching them several yards away. Harry leaned down and rested his forehead on hers.

"Harry, I love you." Ginny said, her voice breaking.

Harry choked up. "I-"

She shushed him. "I know. Go save the world, Potter."

* * *

The Death Eaters formed a barrier around Harry as he walked to his death. It was a blur. He tripped on a tree root, and lay on the ground for a few seconds before being hauled up roughly.

"The Dark Lord's been waiting, Potter." spat the Death Eater closest to Harry.

"Who?" Harry asked stupidly. "Oh, you mean Voldemort?"

Several of them roared in anger, but one chuckled loudly. "He's going to die anyway."

Wanting to anger them more, Harry decided to say the first thing on his mind. "Do you all realize how pathetic your "Dark Lord" is?"

The Death Eaters stayed silent, but one growled menacingly.

"Voldemort failed to kill me when I was a baby, right? I doubt he was weak enough to pick up a twenty-two pound one year old and chuck him out the window."

"The Dark Lord wished to kill you using wizardry, not a mere Muggle way of murder." a Death Eater said, his voice shaking.

One of them pulled out their wand and cast a silencing charm on Harry. They came to a clearing where Voldemort sat on a throne made completely out of sticks. Hagrid was four hundred feet away, shackled and chained. Harry closed his eyes as Voldemort rose from the makeshift throne. He couldn't tell what was happening.

"Harry Potter." Voldemort hissed. "The Boy Who Lived."

Harry opened his eyes. The Death Eaters were still, and in that one moment, nothing in the forest moved. Voldemort raised his wand, his head tilted to one side, wondering what would happen if he went on. Harry took a deep breath, and welcomed Death.


End file.
